Educational Technology, Media, and Materials for Individuals With Disabilities Program—National Center on Technology Systems in Local Educational Agencies

Overview

Purpose of Program: The purpose of the Educational Technology, Media, and Materials for Individuals with Disabilities Program (ETechM2 Program) is to improve results for children with disabilities by (1) promoting the development, demonstration, and use of technology; (2) supporting educational media activities designed to be of educational value in the classroom for children with disabilities; (3) providing support for captioning and video description that is appropriate for use in the classroom; and (4) providing accessible educational materials to children with disabilities in a timely manner.

Absolute Priority: National Center on Technology Systems in Local Educational Agencies.

The purpose of this priority is to fund a cooperative agreement to establish and operate a National Center on Technology Systems in Local Educational Agencies (Center). The Center will provide TA on a framework for LEAs to implement comprehensive and sustainable assistive and instructional technology systems to include (1) effective professional development and training for instructional and support personnel, administrators, families, and other decision makers in the use and acquisition of assistive and instructional technology by students with disabilities; (2) identification of funding sources for costly assistive and instructional devices and services; and (3) coordination of programs to acquire, maintain, and reuse assistive and instructional technology devices and services.

The Center must achieve, at a minimum, the following expected outcomes:

(a) Increased knowledge of providers and decision-makers in LEAs about evidence-based assistive and instructional technology tools and practices (EBPs) for students with disabilities and their families;
(b) Increased effective use of assistive and instructional technology in LEAs within comprehensive and sustainable SEA-aligned systems 5 as applicable;
(c) Increased partnerships between LEAs and community stakeholders to support sustainable and comprehensive systems; and
(d) Increased capacity of providers and decision-makers to sustain comprehensive LEA and State-aligned systems for the effective use of assistive and instructional technology by students with disabilities and their families.

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Estimated Number of Awards: 1. 
This program does not require cost sharing or matching.